Prayer for a President You Prefer Not

I was pretty vocal during the 2016 election about my opposition to Donald Trump. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t want Hillary Clinton to be our next President either, but that didn’t mean I could bring myself to vote for Mr. Trump as a result. Instead, on Election Day, I cast the ballot for a candidate I knew wasn’t going to win, but with whom I could stand on most issues.

But can I be honest for a moment? I was actually kind of relieved Mr. Trump won. Kind of.

As many of his supporters stated, 1) he has a respected pro-life running mate in Mike Pence, and 2) he will likely be nominating one or more Supreme Court Justices. Neither of those facts proved compelling enough to persuade me to vote for him, but they are positives nonetheless.

And so I found myself in a bit of an odd place. My friends and family are well-versed in the reasons I did not, and urged others not to, vote for Mr. Trump. And yet, as I did with President Obama before him, I feel compelled to show a high degree of respect for the office and the man that God has raised to this position.

I do not think, as some evangelical leaders have, that Mr. Trump is a kind of David or Samson anymore than I thought that of Barack Obama. To compare either of these men to the foreshadows of Christ is borderline blasphemy, but more likely merely bad exegesis.

So, here I stand. I believe as a follower of Christ that it is my duty and privilege to go before the Lord and pray for this leader. And my prayer for him this past week has been something like this…

Father in heaven, thank You for showing us an undeserved mercy in sparing us from the treacherous hand of Hillary Clinton. I pray that You would guide President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect Pence as they seek to lead this nation. Would You use Mr. Pence’s Christian conviction to help guide Mr. Trump as they may be influential in moving the pro-life cause forward? Please bring abortion to an end in America. And would You draw Mr. Trump to faith in Christ and help him to recognize his need to be reconciled to You through the perfect work of Christ on the cross? I pray for their protection, for wisdom, and most of all that You would grant the Church in America the opportunity to be Your witnesses and to see a great revival in this land. In Jesus’ name. Amen.